NEW YORK – Crude prices bounced above $80 per barrel once again on Wednesday, a level that even OPEC leaders have said is too high given the fragile state of the global economy.

And again it is the U.S. currency that is getting most of the blame.

The dollar gave up more ground against the euro early Wednesday, sending prices above the psychologically important $80 level early.

Benchmark crude for December delivery added 87 cents to $80.47 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In London, Brent crude for December delivery rose 87 cents to $78.98 on the ICE Futures exchange.

The Energy Information Administration then reported that oil and gasoline supplies dropped, a surprise to most energy analysts who believed that the amount of unused crude in storage would grow.

Prices jumped immediately, yet that same report contained the same issues that have raised questions about why energy prices are rising right now.

The demand for gasoline in the United States is flat compared with last year. That does not signal a healthy economy or demand for energy.

Last year at this time, not only was the economic crises unfolding, but the aftermath of a violent hurricane season in the Gulf of Mexico had crimped demand for gas.

Gasoline prices were in free fall then and the cost for a gallon of gas had fallen from $4.11 over the summer to $2.39 on Nov. 4.

It’s a different story this year.

Gas prices hit a new high for the year last week and the national average price for a gallon on Wednesday was around $2.68. That is 22.3 cents more expensive than last month, according to auto club AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service.

Gas prices are following the price of crude, not because refiners are turning a lot of it into fuel, but because a damaged dollar has made it comparatively cheap to buy.

Crude is bought and sold in dollars, so if you are holding euros or another strong currency, you can get more crude for less.

On Wednesday the EIA said refiners cut operations even further, and every day last week they bought 233,000 fewer barrels of oil each day than the did last year.

Gasoline demand is flat, jet fuel demand is down and so is demand for distillate fuels.

Last month the secretary general of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries told the London Times that $80 per barrel was “a little bit high at this time of economic crisis.” Abdalla El-Badri, of Libya, pointed out that there are millions of barrels of oil floating in huge tankers on the ocean, and said supply is not the problem.

He blamed oil speculators, as do others.

OPEC isn’t “telling you that oil is a good buy at these prices,” analyst Stephen Schork said. “The only people who are telling you that oil is worth $85 (a barrel) is Wall Street.”

Refiners have been stung by the same high crude prices. They haven’t been able to charge much for fuel, but they must still pay high prices for crude. So they have been slowing production.

“If the demand isn’t there, there’s no sense in producing any more,” said Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates.

That has helped to push gas prices higher even though Americans aren’t driving much more.

In other Nymex trading, heating oil rose 1.5 cents to $2.0886 a gallon. Gasoline for December delivery rose less than a penny to $2.0073 a gallon. Natural gas for December fell 12.5 cents to $4.797 per 1,000 cubic feet.